(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) People walk past a propaganda billboard showing Chinese President Xi Jinping along a street in Beijing on March 2, 2018. T he Trump administration is forcefully pressing its case on a variety of Chinese trade practices that it views as unfair or discriminatory. Successive rounds of punitive tariffs have been implemented, with more potentially to come. These may or may not have their intended effect, and could lead to wider conflict. Although there has been no shortage of criticism of the tariffs (both in the United States and beyond), even their staunchest critics have frequently acknowledged that many of the United States’ grievances are legitimate. In fact, the European Union, Japan, and other trade partners have voiced many of the same concerns for years. There is a growing sense that China is not “playing by the rules” and that its practices of state-led and subsidized economic development need to be addressed one way or the other. With the...

AP Photo/Nick Ut Cargo containers are seen on top of ships anchored off the Long Beach Harbor waiting to be unloaded I n the wake of the announcement on steel and aluminum tariffs, and complaints against China’s thefts of intellectual property, the trade discussion emphasizes a U.S. administration perceived as alarmingly protectionist; and the risks of a damaging trade war between the U.S. and China, and perhaps globally. But the real problem is much broader: a multilateral trade system is seen as moribund, unable to meaningfully reduce barriers and effectively adjudicate disputes. And there is growing unease about the overall state of economic globalization. Related questions include: Is the U.S. undermining the WTO, and if so what are the implications? What are the consequences of the US withdrawal from the TPP, and possible withdrawal from NAFTA? All of these items are merely symptoms of four fundamental underlying issues, which have been slowly coming to a head for years and in...